Meeting the Dads 09: Johnny Smith
by mmooch
Summary: **Part of 'Who's Your Baby's Daddy' series.** Well, that was the fastest explanation so far, and all it required was a handshake.


**Meeting the Dads: Johnny Smith**

Summary: Well, that was the fastest explanation so far, and all it required was a handshake. Part of 'Who's Your Baby's Daddy?' series.

A/N: In response to Challenge 3064: conception by conspiracy *non-stargate* by shelli.

A/N2: Thanks to my betas: zigpal and JediKnight.

A/N3: I've gotten some concerned reviews about the idea that Buffy would consider an abortion when her whole life is about saving others. Just to point out, it is only _considering_. Given the danger of being a pregnant Slayer would be a good enough reason for her to think about, not to mention worrying that she was carrying the child of the human equivalent of a monster. So while she will talk about it, that in no way indicates that she'll actually do it. Okay? Feel better now?

Warning: Non-fuzzy type feelings for Maggie, Riley and the Initiative…duh!!

Rating: FR15 for language and talk of sex, of course, she's _pregnant_ after all.

Pairing: Basically a Buffy/Giles _friendship_. Anything else is up to you, the reviewers – within reason of course.

Disclaimer: BtVS characters belong to Joss Whedon / Mutant Enemy. The Dead Zone characters belong to Michael Piller, Shawn Piller, and Lionsgate Television. I claim no rights to any copyrighted material. Please do not copy or take this story without my permission.

-------------------------------------

**Castle Rock, Maine**

"How can I help you?" Johnny Smith inquired as his friend, Bruce introduced the pair standing in his living room: the tall man was Rupert Giles and the small blonde was Buffy Summers. Such a strange couple, but hardly the strangest he had come across since waking up from his coma.

"Well, we have something to tell you that's private," Buffy started, glancing at the handsome black man who let them in.

Bruce nodded his understanding, but was unwilling to go far since he wasn't sure of their intentions. "I'll just be in the next room," he replied, gesturing over his shoulder to the doorway.

But before he could get to there, Johnny had grabbed Buffy's hand to shake it and went into one of his trances. A quick look at Johnny's hand confirmed he was still wearing the glove – what the hell was going on? He turned to glare at the woman, but she appeared to be in the same state as his friend.

"Buffy? Buffy!" Giles called out, terrified for his Slayer. He could tell something strange was happening. Maybe this 'man' was really a demon or sorcerer of some kind. He started stalking over to the two of them, ready to yank them apart.

But he was stopped by the worried yell of Bruce, "Don't! They're in a psychic trance and I don't know what forcibly pulling them out of it would do to them."

It didn't matter anyway as the pair disengaged with a sharp release of breath on both their parts. Giles moved to catch a weaving Buffy, and Bruce did the same for Johnny. They stood in that strange tableau for several minutes, no one sure what to make of the unprecedented situation.

Predictably, it was Buffy who broke the silence, "I guess that doesn't happen often, huh?"

Still shaken by what he had seen of her life, Johnny absently remarked, "Not yet. And I certainly hope not ever again. My gloves are supposed to stop the visions from happening."

Buffy had been a witness to his life as well – maybe because of her Slayer dreams or something – and felt sympathy for the man who had lost so much because of an accident. "That's got to be a tough way to live."

Unable to hold his curiosity any longer, Bruce snapped, "What the hell just happened here?"

Seeing that the psychic was still processing, Buffy had to answer the agitated man, "Well, I just got a history lesson on the life and times of Johnny Smith. And judging by the look on his face, I'd guess that the same thing happened to him."

Bruce took in the almost frightened expression on his buddy's face and demanded, "What's wrong with him?"

"Some of the stuff in my life is difficult to believe, and even though he knows it's the truth, it still takes time to convince his mind," Buffy replied with a rueful chuckle.

Bruce was about to ask another question, when Johnny snorted, "_'Some'_ of your life? I'd say almost _all_ of the past four or five years is unbelievable! How do you deal with it?"

Buffy gave him a sad smile. "Sometimes I don't. You probably saw how I ran away, or denied the truth – even after living it for a while."

Giles suddenly looked alarmed at her words. "Are you telling me that he knows _everything_?" he asked with more than just a small amount of concern.

"Probably more than you do, Watcher-mine," she said casually, but with a hint of discomfort. She didn't like anyone knowing her that well either. Talk about loss of privacy!

"Okay, I hate being the odd man out now. Can somebody please tell me what you're talking about?" Bruce pleaded, his gaze shifting from John to the strangers and back to John, looking for some kind of clue.

"Sure, but you'd better grab some scotch or something. This tends to go better with vast amounts of alcohol," Buffy warned him.

Johnny glared at her. "You aren't thinking of having any, are you?!"

Buffy just laughed at him, even though she should be glaring back. "Of course not. Even if I weren't pregnant, me and alcohol are not mixy things."

Remembering the incident from the start of college, Johnny chuckled, "I'd say not. _'Boy smell good'_," he said with an amused look at her, trying to picture her as a cave-girl.

That made her start pouting. "Hey, not my fault! It was tainted beer!" she tried to defend herself.

With his own memories of the incident, Giles laughed as well before teasing her a bit, "Of course, my dear girl. But it's proof that you should stay far away from alcohol yourself."

Buffy sat down on the couch and folded her arms across her chest, looking very much like a petulant child. "Fine. Make fun of me; see if I care," she said angrily, but couldn't hide the sparkle of humor in her eyes as she did so. It _was_ a pretty funny thing.

Bruce interjected for the sake of trying to remind them that not everyone knew what happened, "Well, _that_ certainly sounds like a story worth hearing."

-------------------------------------

Some hours later, they had finished sharing their stories for the sake of Bruce and Giles. Buffy had been thinking of something while Johnny explained about his 'dead zone' and his visions. Even though his problem appeared to be physical in nature instead of mystical, she couldn't help but remember when she had the aspect of the demon and couldn't control that power. She felt bad that Johnny was the same way…sort of.

Buffy interrupted him, "Giles, you think that there's someone who could help Johnny control these visions? That way he wouldn't have to worry about touching someone without his gloves."

"I'm not sure. We could always check with a coven back in England, I suppose," Giles answered, a thoughtful look crossing his mind as he sat back on the couch to ponder the idea.

"What about that monk thing that Oz did?" she suggested, remembering her friend with a pang.

Remembering the name, Johnny asked, "To control his werewolf side?"

Buffy shrugged. "Yeah. I mean it obviously didn't work perfectly, but you don't turn furry three nights a month. Maybe it'd work better for you," she suggested.

Bruce looked excited by the possibility. He watched his friend struggle with this so-called 'gift' for some time now. Being swept up in a vision when he didn't want one, then not being able to get one when they desperately needed it. "It might not be a bad idea for you to get a better handle on this thing, John. Maybe they could even help you learn how to force a vision when necessary," he added hopefully.

Not wanting to get his hopes up, Johnny answered reluctantly, "I guess it wouldn't hurt to at least ask. Thanks, Buffy," he said with a grateful smile.

"No problem, it sucks not to be able to control a power," Buffy replied with compassion.

-------------------------------------

A couple weeks later, Buffy got a call from Johnny. They had talked to Giles' magick friends, who figured that it would take a combination of magick and training with the monks to get his visions under control. Johnny was just letting her know that he was about to leave for the monastery.

She promised to find a way to reach him when she found out the baby's paternity, knowing that he would want to know either way. He also extracted a promise from her to be extra careful until she was back at full Slayer ability. Which Giles whole-heartedly agreed with when she repeated their conversation.

Laying back in her bed, Buffy ran through the dads that she had met so far. And while some of them had her very concerned, it was the ones like Johnny that eased her worries some. Not just that the baby had a decent father, but that he might want to be part of their lives. She only hoped that they would still feel that way when they found out the truth about her – those that didn't already know.

-------------------------------------

A/N: Okay, I know that it's short, but I'm running out of ideas as to how to lengthen these. But it doesn't matter since there's only a few chapters left before the voting. So get your thinking hats on and get ready.


End file.
